News + Insights

Closely Held Businesses: You Make the Plan, or a Plan Will Be Made For You

Written By Merrill G. Jones, II and Zachary F. Lamb

Who is the Better Planner for Your Affairs: You or the State? Planning for the succession of a closely held business is a lot like making a will. An individual has the opportunity to make a will that directs how the indiv…

Protecting Your Family Business for When Marriages End

Written By Merrill G. Jones, II and Zachary F. Lamb

Love may be eternal, but all relationships on this earth are guaranteed to end at some point. In fact, we know with certainty that every marriage is going to end in one of two ways, either by death or divorce.  For b…

Top 10 Articles for Businesses in 2023

Written By Merrill G. Jones, II

As we eagerly anticipate the New Year, it's time to reflect on the most impactful articles that captured the attention of businesses in 2023. This year, Ward and Smith attorneys provided invaluable insights into a wide ra…

Has Your Business Attorney Met Your Estate Planning Attorney?

Written By Richard J. Crow and Zachary F. Lamb

Every business should have documentation that confirms its ownership, management, and governance structures. If the business has more than one owner, the documentation should address transfers of ownership interests and c…

Whose Business is it Anyway? A Business Succession Case Study

Written By Jane Francis Nowell

Three Ward and Smith attorneys provided an overview of succession planning, estate planning, divorce, and the separation of assets. The seminar — A Business Succession Case Study — used an interactive presenta…

Five Things to Consider When Selling Your CBD Business

Written By Merrill G. Jones, II

For many business owners, the intended exit strategy is to sell to a competitor or a larger company, thereby taking advantage of the upside on the value they have created through years of diligent and hard work building a …

Liability Waivers and Questionnaires in the Time of COVID-19

Written By William A. Oden, III

As businesses begin to re-open and re-engage their workforce, and in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it is worth exploring requiring your employees (and in certain circumstances, customers) to execute a liability w…

Howdy Partner: A Trail Guide for Promoting an Employee to Co-Owner

Written By Jennifer V. Boyer

It is a particularly thorny question – one faced by owners of businesses both large and small:  Is it time to promote this employee to co-owner? Panelists at our 2019 Closely Held Business Summit recently noted…

Leases and Bankruptcy in a Time of Coronavirus

Written By Lance P. Martin

Many businesses in bankruptcy or heading that way – particularly retail establishments – face an uncertain future as states and cities move from closures to phased re-openings.  No one knows with certaint…

COVID-19 and Benefits: "Now, a Word from Your HR Director"

By now, most employers have been inundated with information on the CARES Act, which was recently passed in an attempt to stimulate the U.S. economy in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.  However, you may not know that t…

Treasury Department Releases Vital Paycheck Protection Program Information

Written By William S. Durr

The much-anticipated CARES Act provided for the Paycheck Protection Program, which is meant to help small businesses both retain their employees and meet their rent and other operating expenses during the COVID-19 pandemic…

SPECIAL ALERT: Governor Roy Cooper Shutters More Businesses and Extends K-12 Public School Closure

Written By William S. Durr

On March 23, Governor Roy Cooper signed Executive Order 120 ("Order"). The Order extends the in-person closure of the public K-12 schools in North Carolina until May 15.  The Order further limits mass gatherings &nda…

Real-Life Lessons on How Mid-Sized Companies Handle Ownership Transitions

Written By Jennifer V. Boyer

Business consultant Karen Albritton and attorney Deana Labriola, along with Ward and Smith attorney Matt Thompson, all with personal experience in a variety of companies, discussed several of the tricky…

Lifetime Transfers of Family Business Interests: An Estate Tax Planning Opportunity in Uncertain Political Times

Written By Peter B. von Stein

When a family business owner's goal is to ultimately pass ownership of the business on to the next generation, business succession planning and the owner's estate planning are inextricably linked.  The most difficult…

Live-Action Role-Playing — The Challenges of Working With Family Members

Written By William A. Oden, III

Leaders of closely held businesses got an opportunity to view a family-owned enterprise as an outsider would, instead of their usual position inside a company. Ward and Smith's 2019 Closely Held Business Summit featured a…

How Companies Must Tackle the 4 M’s to Grow Through ‘No-Man’s Land’

Written By Zachary F. Lamb

Businesses trying to grow through the stage where they're too big to be small businesses, but not large enough to be big businesses, must focus on four key factors to be successful. That's what Doug Tatum, chairman of New…

So You've Been Watching (and Cringing at) HBO's "Succession?"

Written By Jennifer V. Boyer and Richard J. Crow

Let's discuss some less-dramatic exit options for business owners (when they want to step away). You may not run a global media conglomerate, but even closely held business owners (and perhaps especially closely held fami…

Is it Time to Review Your Succession Plan Documentation?

Written By Merrill G. Jones, II and Zachary F. Lamb

Business succession and estate plans are made based on circumstances existing at the time they are put in place.  Though skillful attorneys strive to prepare comprehensive documents that take into account all reasona…

What Could Go Wrong? The Importance of Business Succession Planning

Written By Merrill G. Jones, II and Zachary F. Lamb

Most business owners expect that their company will continue to operate after they stop working. However, successfully transitioning control of a business rarely occurs without thoughtful planning.  Consideration mus…

Succession Planning—Bet the Farm on It

Written By E. Bradley Evans, Matthew W. Thompson, and Peter B. von Stein

Despite recent trends toward consolidation in the agricultural industry, farming generally remains a family affair.  According to the United States Department of Agriculture, 98% of all farms in the United States are …